Current state of mental health support for young people highlighted in Welsh Youth Parliament report

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a big impact on the way in which we as young people in Wales live our lives, the way we learn, socialise, and work,” says the Welsh Youth Parliament (WYP) in their ‘Let’s Talk About Mental Health’ report.

WYP launched the report alongside a video with the aim to reflect a “real life picture” concerning the current state of mental health support for children and young people in Wales.

Approximately 23,000 young people responded to the Children’s Commissioner for Wales’ ‘Coronavirus and Me’ consultation, which the WYP support.

They have also discussed their experiences of living with the pandemic with the First Minister of Wales.

Laura Anne Jones MS has expressed her concern over crisis provision for young people in Wales which has been described as “disappointingly thin” by the Welsh Parliament’s Children’s Committee.

Ms Jones, the Shadow Minister for Equalities, Children and Young People, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic, and particularly the lockdowns, have highlighted just how important it is to support and protect all our young people from the immense challenges they have faced and continue to face.

“The past six or seven months have been both uncertain and unusual for our young people. Life has changed immeasurably since March, and it has changed very, very fast. We must listen to our young people, because the effects of inaction and delay of any kind could have a long-term impact and continue to be felt long after the pandemic has passed

“The new Minister, announced yesterday, for mental health must explain as a priority what she will be doing to tackle this growing crisis.”

The Welsh Youth Parliament Emotional and Mental Health Support Committee were able to obtain the views of 1,600 people through an online survey made up of children, young people, parents/carers, education and healthcare professionals in order to properly inform the report and video.

Back in July, they also spoke with young people across Wales through online sessions to discuss their mental health.

The main message, which is promoted with the video, is: “We need to make a difference and fast as it’s our lives affected”.

Let’s talk about mental health 💬

📝Lengthy waiting lists
📚 Lack of education & information
🗣️Need to normalise the issue

These are just some of the findings from our inquiry. Read the full findings and recommendations 👉🏽 https://t.co/tfQ2cE1MO7 pic.twitter.com/Nd4rkDqbbY

— Welsh Youth Parliament (@WelshYouthParl) October 9, 2020

According to the report, more than 60 per cent of young people surveyed experience difficult emotions or suffer with their mental health at least once a week, whereas only 8 per cent reported never having such feelings and half never receiving support.

Less than half of young people said their place of learning regularly discussed mental health support, with the other half saying they had not known or did not know if they had received training or information at their place of learning.

A 17-year-old respondent from Anglesey said: “Having someone else show concern before you raise it yourself can be a huge motivating factor in seeking help.

“It may be useful to develop a way to make people aware of the signs of struggle, so this is possible.”

Ifan Price, Member of the Emotional and Mental Health Support Committee, said: “When I travelled around my constituency there were many things that shocked me.

“One of the things is how many people need mental health support, the second is the lack of support for us, and third, the number of people who do not know that there is support available if we are struggling.”

The committee give a number of recommendations to help improve these aspects of mental health in young people across Wales, such as:

• Improve the quality of information materials, ensuring they are clear, accessible and engaging to young people
• The creation of a wellbeing pack for families and friends, to better equip them to identify signs, signpost information, and provide support to young people who are experiencing difficult emotions and mental health
• Ensure that young people are involved in advising on all aspects of information provision and support
• Establish a recognised central ‘one stop shop’ for information, resources, and support
• Significantly increase the amount of advertising and publicity to raise awareness of where information and support can be accessed. Messaging should express the importance of seeking help early
• Ensure that emotional wellbeing and mental health gets taught consistently across Wales from an earlier age, and with greater frequency
• Enhance, and regularly update the mental health training which education, health and social care workers receive
• Schools should increase the amount of time that counsellors are available to support young people
• Offer more services where young people can remain anonymous in order to help them feel more comfortable with the process of reaching out for help
• Review CAMHS as a matter of urgency, in order to reduce waiting times, and ensure that funding and capacity is sufficient to provide the necessary support

The Emotional and Mental Health Committee say they are passionate about ensuring there is better support available for children and young people in Wales and believe there is a need for change.

Visit the following websites to find out more information on how to discuss mental health:

Mind Cymru: https://www.mind.org.uk/about-us/mind-cymru/

Meic Cymru: https://www.meiccymru.org/

Hub of Hope (national mental health database): https://hubofhope.co.uk/

CALM (helpline for boys/men): https://www.thecalmzone.net/

PAPYRUS (prevention of young suicide): https://papyrus-uk.org

Samaritans: https://www.samaritans.org/